Advise for my new toy, while it's batteries charge

[Kruzin]

How long should I expect a charge to last?
I fully charged it overnight the first night before using it. It's been running for 1 1/2 days now without being set in the recharge base.

[Kurt]

Originally posted by Wombat
I thought L-ion was still not supposed to have memory.

They do. As I said, they show it after a longer period of time(not because they get it after a longer time, but since it's lesser you notice it after a longer period of time).

[Helevitia]

Originally posted by Kruzin
How long should I expect a charge to last?
I fully charged it overnight the first night before using it. It's been running for 1 1/2 days now without being set in the recharge base.

up to 10 days.

[Helevitia]

Originally posted by Kurt
They do. As I said, they show it after a longer period of time(not because they get it after a longer time, but since it's lesser you notice it after a longer period of time).

AFAIK, you get 80-100% charge for several months and then
~%80 for ~4 years(assuming 2-4 hours a day use).

edit: I am referring to li-ion and li-poly batteries.

[Greebe]

Li Ion or Polymer batteries have a shelf life of a tad more than one year

[Greebe]

Originally posted by Kurt
They all have a memory effect. The newer batteries will show it after a longer time.

If I recall correctly, 3M was working on some plastic-hybrid battery that didn't have a memory effect. Don't know what's the state of the project now...

Lithium ion/polymer batteries don't have a memory

LiPo's have plastic plates within them

[Helevitia]

Originally posted by Greebe
Li Ion or Polymer batteries have a shelf life of a tad more than one year

hmm? My mp3 player claims 4+ years of battery life. It has a Li-poly.

Dave

[Kurt]

Originally posted by Greebe
Lithium ion/polymer batteries don't have a memory

LiPo's have plastic plates within them

Yes, it's the actual wear of the battery. Everyone uses "memory effect" though, even if it's not the proper term.

[Ribbit]

Li-Ion batteries slowly eat themselves, whether they're used or not, and become useless after about 5 years.

[Greebe]

In Li I or Polymer it's actually a chemical decomposition... this is completely different than the memory effect where that can be broken and the cell regenerated by doing a full cycle discharge followed up by a full charge and then peaked.

[Greebe]

Dave there are different considerations to taken into consideration... on your MP3 player it's a very low discharge type device... with a trickle charger... both of these factors add up to why they claim 4 years, but that would be on the extreme outside fringe. Trust me you'll want to replace it before then because of the reduced playing time (capacity).

Temperature also has a extreme effect, cold they are not so bad as NiMH cells but not as good as NiCd. On the flipside heat is the worst condition. Chemical decomposition can result even if the cell is not being used. Once this occurs the cell will bloat (puff up etc) and thermal ruaway will occur. One incident reciently in Cali where a guy brings his R/C stuff to work with him (long drive from home) left the cells resting on the passenger seat. He no longer has that car.

I'm already seeing the Li Ion battery in my cell phone needing replacement and it's not quite 1 year old yet. and have a LiPo replacement picked out (I'll rebuild the single cell pack myself)

I use the latest generation high discharge rate LiPo(lymer) batteries for my R/C planes. All will self discharge little by little over time so I top them off (this is not called peaking tho, completely different) with an AstroFlight Lithium charger (specific for Lithium type batteries only). I keep a log of the recharge capacity which is displayed in mah as is the cell voltage and time to charge... which all should be charged at no more than a 1C rate (1C = 1 x the Charge capacity, ie if the battery is rated for 1000mah then it would be recharged at a 1000mah rate max)

Discharging any lithium battery below 2.70vdc/cell also causes an irreversable chemical decomposition. Most of us don't allow discharges below 3.0vdc. Reason for this is 1. we have a safety margin and 2. typically 95% of it's capacity has already been used. If discharged less can cause them to either rupture or catch fire depending on the circumstances. Also note that Lithium Ion/poly cells should never be stored in a disharged state.